Many sports involve a throwing or swinging motion such as the throwing of a ball (baseball, etc.) or swinging of a bat (baseball, softball, etc.) club (golf, etc.) or racquet (tennis, racquetball, etc.). The arm providing the power to the motion is known as the power arm in swinging or the throwing arm in throwing. In this specification the power arm will be referred to as the throwing arm regardless of whether the person is throwing or swinging. The person's other, non-power arm is known as the non-throwing arm. Each arm is associated with its respective shoulder so that there is a throwing shoulder and a non-throwing shoulder. Further, the hip on the same side of the body as the throwing arm can be referred to as the throwing side hip or simply throwing hip. The hip on the opposite side of the throwing arm can be referred to as the non-throwing side hip or simply the non-throwing hip.
Improper throwing or swinging motions can strain a person's arm and shoulder and potentially lead to injury. Maximizing the effectiveness and efficiency of the correct throwing motion can result in similar velocities as incorrect throwing, but with lower effort and less strain, and in so doing reduce stress on the arm muscles, tendons, ligaments and other structures thereby reducing the incidence of arm injuries.
Proper throwing or swinging mechanics typically require hip rotation with respect to the shoulders. The amount of hip motion can vary. Determining whether an adequate amount of hip motion has occurred during a given throw or swing for a given individual can be difficult.
This invention results from an attempt to devise a simple and more efficient method and apparatus to improve sports ball throwing and swinging velocity and reduce arm injuries caused by incorrect mechanics.